Cutaneous malignant and premalignant conditions caused by chronic arsenicosis from contaminated ground water consumption: a profile of patients from eastern India.

Abstract

Natural arsenic pollution is a major global health problem. The two worst affected areas e Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. Arsenic is a well-documented human carcinogen that affects many organs including the skin. The authors sought to find out the clinical patterns of different malignant and premalignant conditions associated with chronic arsenicosis from drinking contaminated ground water in a group of patients from eastern India. This was a clinical observational study. Patients with chronic arsenicoses with suspected cutaneous malignancies for whom dermatology service was sought were enrolled in the study. A total of 24 patients (male to female ratio, 11:1; age range, 32-71 years; mean age, 52.2 years) were evaluated. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was the commonest malignancies in our series, seen in 10 (41.7%) patients. This was followed by Bowen's disease (9 [37.5%]) and basal cell carcinoma (8 [33.3%]). Three patients (12.5%) had > 1 type of cutaneous malignancies. Multicentric lesions were seen in 3 cases. The most common site of involvement was the chest (8 [33.3%]). No statistically significant correlation was found between number of lesions and arsenic content in the hairs and nails of the patients.